The present invention relates generally to luggage and other types of containers for personal belongings. The present invention relates more particularly to luggage capable of collapsing to occupy a smaller volume.
Luggage is typically used to contain personal belongings while traveling. It is often desirable for luggage to be rigid to protect the belongings stored therein, especially when the luggage is handled by persons other than the luggage owner (e.g., at an airport). However, most luggage is only used during travel and is otherwise stored at the user's residence.
Some luggage is quite voluminous and requires a significant amount of storage space. The amount of space occupied by luggage can also be an issue when transporting luggage from a manufacturer to a distributor such as a retail store. For example, luggage deliveries are often inefficient since the luggage consists of mostly empty space. In a retail setting, the amount of space required to display luggage often forces retailers to display only a small portion of their luggage inventory while storing the majority of the luggage in a warehouse or other location that is inaccessible to a consumer.
For these and other reasons, it would be desirable to provide luggage that has sufficient structural rigidity sufficient to protect the belongings stored therein while the luggage is in use and which can collapse to occupy a lesser volume when the luggage is not in use.